Catholic Advocates Urge Trump Administration to Resolve EB-4 Visa Backlog

Catholic advocates and religious leaders are pressing the Trump administration to resolve a mounting backlog in religious worker visas under the Employment-Based Fourth Preference, or EB-4, warning that priests, ministers, and lay workers face visa expiration and possible departure before green card cases are reviewed. As of August 15, 2025, the administration says it is building a standalone process for these cases, while lawmakers push a safety net to let affected workers remain lawfully in the country during the wait.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on August 7, 2025, that the administration is “committed” to fixing the backlog and is working on a separate EB-4 track for religious workers. The plan would move them out of direct competition with other applicants in the same category, a step that faith leaders hope will speed decisions and prevent forced exits that disrupt parish life.

The backlog stems in part from agency priorities that shifted resources toward other EB-4 uses, including cases for unaccompanied minors, according to church leaders and immigration advocates. The result has been long delays for foreign-born clergy and religious workers who are serving U.S. congregations after entering on temporary R-1 visas. Without relief, many could see their status end before permanent residence is approved, creating gaps in worship services, community outreach, and pastoral care.

Dioceses report growing strain. The Diocese of Brooklyn, for example, says about 20 religious workers are already affected. Parish leaders describe scrambling to cover Mass schedules, counseling, and social services if key staff must leave on short notice. Catholic advocates argue that the backlog hurts not only churches but also schools, hospitals, shelters, and food programs that rely on steady staffing.

Policy Moves and Legislative Push

On Capitol Hill, a bipartisan group led by Senator Tim Kaine introduced the Religious Workforce Protection Act on April 3, 2025. The bill would allow religious workers to keep lawful nonimmigrant status while their green card cases are pending, removing the immediate risk of falling out of status simply due to processing delays.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) backs the measure, with USCCB President Archbishop Timothy Broglio calling it “desperately needed” to keep ministries running.

The administration’s proposed administrative fix aims to create a dedicated channel within EB-4 for religious workers, apart from other special immigrant subgroups. Supporters say a separate queue could speed adjudications because officers would not have to weigh cases alongside unrelated EB-4 filings.

While full details have not been released, officials say the goal is a streamlined track that reduces wait times and prevents avoidable status lapses that force people to leave.

Congress has also taken steps to prevent further disruption. A continuing resolution signed by President Trump in March 2025 extended the EB-4 program for non-ministerial religious workers through September 2025, avoiding a lapse that would have worsened the bottleneck. Catholic advocates welcomed the extension but argue it is not enough without faster processing or the temporary status protection envisioned by the Religious Workforce Protection Act.

VisaVerge.com reports that the EB-4 category includes special immigrants such as religious workers, who can seek permanent residence after meeting set criteria. That framework remains intact, but the bottleneck has grown due to resource shifts and integrity reviews in other areas, including cases tied to permanent residence for unaccompanied minors. Church legal teams say they support oversight and anti-fraud steps, while asking the administration to protect bona fide religious worker cases from collateral delays.

For official guidance on EB-4 eligibility and process steps, applicants and sponsors can review U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services materials on the EB-4 category at: https://www.uscis.gov/working-in-the-united-states/permanent-workers/employment-based-immigration-fourth-preference-eb-4

Human Impact across Parishes

Behind the policy debate are real people with decades of service. Many foreign-born priests and religious brothers and sisters serve in communities with few U.S.-born clergy. If their visas expire, Mass schedules may be cut, parish closures can accelerate, and specialized ministries—such as language-specific outreach, youth programs, and hospital chaplaincy—may pause or end.

Parishioners often rely on familiar clergy for weddings, funerals, and counseling; sudden departures can leave families without trusted support at hard moments.

R-1 workers, including lay ministers and religious educators, face similar pressure. They teach catechism, prepare people for sacraments, and coordinate food pantries and shelters. In areas where one person fills many roles, losing even one worker can ripple widely. Catholic advocates say these services are especially important in immigrant neighborhoods, where staff speak the local language and understand cultural needs.

The USCCB and local dioceses stress that sponsors must show bona fide religious status and prove that each worker has belonged to the faith tradition for at least two years, with site checks to protect program integrity. They argue that these safeguards show the system can both prevent abuse and support genuine ministry needs if cases are processed in a timely way.

Immigration experts note that the Religious Workforce Protection Act would offer pragmatic relief by stopping the “status cliff” that comes when temporary status ends but a green card application is still in line. They compare it to targeted fixes used in other visa categories during historic backlogs. Backers say that keeping workers lawfully present while cases move forward protects communities without changing the underlying eligibility rules.

Key takeaway: Preserving lawful status for religious workers while EB-4 cases proceed would protect congregations and community programs without altering eligibility rules—providing a narrow, targeted relief to an urgent problem.

Timeline and Next Steps

The administration says it plans to finalize the standalone EB-4 process for religious worker visas in the coming months, with the aim of reducing processing times and clearing the backlog. Details on implementation timelines, filing steps, and case transfer rules have not yet been released publicly.

Faith groups are urging prompt rollout so priests and religious workers at risk of expiration can remain in place while their cases are reviewed.

On the legislative side, the Religious Workforce Protection Act remains a priority for bipartisan senators and Catholic advocates. If enacted, it would:

1. Allow extensions of lawful status tied to a pending adjustment of status or immigrant visa application.
2. Ensure people do not have to leave the United States while they wait.
3. Provide a narrow fix targeted to the current backlog while preserving existing eligibility standards.

Until either the administrative or legislative solution takes effect, dioceses will:

• Triage schedules,
• Pool clergy across parishes,
• Train lay volunteers to cover gaps.

Church leaders emphasize these are stopgaps, not long-term answers. They continue to push for a durable system that moves bona fide cases faster, honors program safeguards, and avoids community disruption.

Administration officials, lawmakers, and religious organizations say they expect regular engagement as the process evolves. Catholic advocates want clear guidance, published timelines, and consistent communication so sponsors and workers can plan.

For now, they point to the September 2025 program extension as a short-term guardrail and to the promised EB-4 standalone process as the key step that could finally relieve the backlog and keep ministry work uninterrupted.